


Untimely Calls

by Wealthywetsunny



Category: Far Cry 5
Genre: Comedy, F/M, Humor, Phone Call, Threats, Video Chat, some slight angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-17
Updated: 2020-03-17
Packaged: 2021-03-01 00:15:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,415
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23186113
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Wealthywetsunny/pseuds/Wealthywetsunny
Summary: A chapter dedicated to each Seed brother for how they would react if Rook's child called her through video chat at the most inopportune time
Relationships: Jacob Seed/Rook, John Seed/Rook, Joseph Seed/Rook
Comments: 15
Kudos: 92





	1. Jacob

The phone in her pocket felt like it weighed a ton. They yanked her watch off her wrist, ripped out her earrings so hard that her skin tore. Her weapons had been confiscated—her beautiful knives and guns that cost a small fortune—but she was left with her phone. 

Jacob’s guards were nothing but the best. Perfection was key for him, but they’re kept on a short leash, so when one man bared his teeth in a faux smile as he patted her down, he was more focused on copping a feel of her ass that he didn’t even consider that her phone was tucked inside her boots. 

Now it’s burning a hole in her pocket as she tries to type out a few texts. 

Autocorrect be damned, she knows that half of what she’s saying isn’t coming out right, but she prays the general idea gets across.

Her back is turned towards the cage, face half buried in her arms when she slips her phone out again and turns the brightness all the way down. It takes a couple tries for the fingerprint recognition to read her dirty skin, but she gets it eventually. 

“The fuck do you think you’re doing?”

She yelps as a massive weight crushes in between her shoulder blades. Jacob leans down, his boot—firmly planted on her back, increasing pressure as he does. He’s got his knee cocked, posing on her like a hunter taking a picture with his kill. 

He’s quiet for a big man. She hadn’t even heard the cage door open. 

“Gimme that.” He moves too quickly, and she’s too scared to react. In one swift action her phone is gone and in Jacob’s hands. 

He turns the slim device around, cocking an eyebrow at the SOS message she was about to send. 

“Are we just…not...checking for these anymore? Really people?” Jacob waves her phone around like it’s a prized trophy. 

His men avert their eyes, unwilling to meet his hard gaze when he swipes it around. Finding the hardened ground beneath them far more interesting. 

And it takes everything in Rook not to lunge at Jacob. If she weren’t so weak, starving as she is now, she might consider it. Instead she croaks out a soft “give it back, asshole.” Straining to glance over her shoulder to see him. 

Jacob looks down at her, where she lies at his feet, and smiles. “Why would I do that?” He wiggles her phone tauntingly as he steps away and lets her breathe. “These aren’t exactly allowed here.” 

She huffs, cautiously rolling to a sitting position. “What are you doing here?” She asks, trying to direct his attention away from what she had been doing. The last thing she wants is a punishment from one of the Seeds. “You’re...you hardly come down here.” 

Jacob tips his head at her, stepping away until his back hits the bars and he can lean comfortably against them.

“You’re observant, little wolf. You’re a special case, though, I’m sure you know that. Hell, Joseph himself asked for you. Remember that?” 

She snorts and nods. How could she not? She’d been safe inside her own cabin, scared out of her wits when Jacob had called her via radio and let her know Joseph had wanted to chat. 

“Then that answers your question. Had to come check on you myself. After all, you’re my star pupil. You’re still here, aren’t you? I’m making you strong.” There’s a strange twinkle in his eyes when he gazes down the length of her body. He’s  _ proud  _ of the monster he’s made of her. And stupidly, that brings tears to her eyes. 

There’s a brief pause of silence where a single tear escapes and runs down her dirty cheek. 

“Don’t much care for crying, dep.” 

She balls her fists up against her thighs and bows her head. He’s winding her up on purpose. She’s about to turn back around, glad for now that he’s somewhat uncaring to her having her phone. It’s more his guard's mistake than hers. But before she can move, her phone rings. 

Her whole body freezes because she knows that tone. She  _ knows it.  _ Facetime. A goddamn video chat. There’s only one person in this county who would dare to do such a thing. Someone she holds above all her friends, someone who she’d kill for. Rook would gladly let the world burn if it meant that her daughter is safe and alive at the end of the day. 

And a part of her being safe is the Seeds not knowing she exists. It hasn’t been easy on either of them, but it’s been working. 

Jacob casually glances at her phone, brow scrunching at the name that appears. For good reason too, he knows everyone in this county, in each region. It comes with the job, of weeding out the weak, of who his brother has baptised, who’s to help Joseph with his sermons. Who’s trouble and who’s not. 

“This name ring any bells?”

He still stands back, fully aware of the anger burning in her eyes, when he shows her the screen. 

_ Eva _

“Don’t lie to me, little wolf.” 

She tenses, wondering right then how well she really knows Jacob. She’s heard his story, how he raised his brothers, that’s why he’s so damn protective of them now. Why he’d sacrifice himself so willingly if only his brothers can be happy. But how much does he actually like kids? Would he care that Eva’s only thirteen? 

“Rook.” He crouches down, squatting in front of her, and even then he’s intimidating. Still large and scary. “Who’s Eva?” 

Maybe it’s the lack of food and water, or even the physical exertion she’s being forced through by his trials. It could be the stress that’s fallen over her by just being  _ around _ Jacob, but she breaks. Her body crumples and she sobs. 

Without thought she crawls towards him on her hands and knees. Unbothered by the dirt that she collects along the way. She reaches him and claws at his jeans, head dipped like she has a chance to hide her tears.

He doesn’t react, just watches her with apathy in his eyes. 

“Please don’t hurt her. Please, Jacob. Do whatever you want to me, but don’t touch her.” 

Jacob’s brow twitches, emotion peaking through when he gingerly grabs a hold of her chin and tips her head up. “Who is she, deputy?”

“My daughter.”

There. Done. No going back now. 

“Didn’t know you had a kid.”

She laughs, it’s watery and tear filled. “That was the point.” She stares at him, flinching when his hand still firmly locked on her jaw, strokes her skin. 

“It’s okay,” he says in a tone that does nothing to soothe her, “I’m not—“ he frowns, shakes his head. “How old is she?” 

“Thirteen.” 

“Jesus Christ—You’re a fucking kid yourself.” He drops her phone, smashes the screen into the dirt and lets the ringing stop. 

“I’m 28. She...I didn’t ask to have a kid. I didn’t mean to, but she’s here, and I wouldn’t wish for my life to be any other way. She’s all I’ve got.” Then, suddenly, another thought pops in her head and her eyes go wide. She practically crawls into his lap when she grabs his jacket and tugs him closer. 

“Don't make me kill her. Don’t let her be my sacrifice, I’ll do anything else. Just...not that.”

“Fucking hell, I’m not—I would never hurt a child. There’s a reason why so many kids are put in John’s bunker. Those are the kids in all our regions, not just his. We don’t want them getting hurt, a war isn’t any place for a child to live in.”

She hiccups and bows her head, falls into Jacob’s chest. “Are you calling me a bad mom, Jacob? For letting her live through this.” 

“No, ‘course not. Just—fuck.” He pushes her off him and stands, staring down at her phone in the dirt. “I should call Joseph.”

She winces, cringing back away from him. Joseph told her his own little fucked up story, the way he murdered his own baby girl.

Jacob just sighs deeply. “My men will guide you out. You should...you should reconsider what you’re doing here, deputy. My kindness won’t last forever, and don’t be mistaken, I’m tempted to use this against you. To take your daughter and make you jump through my hoops in promise of her safety. I’m giving you a choice, dep. I’d suggest you do the right thing and get the hell outta here.” 


	2. John

“I’m back, I hope you didn’t miss me _too_ much, deputy.”

She cringes. Her whole body shaking at the sound of his voice. It had been stupid of her to hesitate, to spend near twenty minutes debating if she should escape. 

When she finally realized how much danger she was in, that she’s underestimating John and that she needed to run, it was too late. 

He’s halfway through the door, the smile on his face evident just by the sound of his voice, when he stops. 

“Where do you think you’re going?” 

She’s halfway rolled across the room. Her eyes had been set on the corner of the wall, on the sharp edge it offers that could cut her hands free. 

“Just…”

He stomps off towards her, waves of anger rolling off him. “Just nothing. You’re going to lie to me and I don’t like that, deputy. You’re better off being quiet.” He grabs hold of the back of her chair and spins her around to face him. 

He’s bent at the waist to be eye level with her, close the same way he was before he left and took Hudson with him. When he tore her shirt open and locked a hand around her throat. Just like before she can smell his cologne, she can see the flecks of different colors that make up his hair. A rush of adrenaline pumps through her veins when he holds her shoulders and squeezes. 

“I’m putting aside my day just for you, deputy. I’m not in the mood to be played with.” He rolls her back to where he left her originally and sighs when she continues to squirm. 

“I had hoped that my leaving would give you time to think of what you had to confess.” He kneels down in front of her. Eyes incredibly soft, impossibly open, and she knows why Joseph trusts him with this. He’s gentle right now, despite the vague threats coating his words. Her muscles relax when he places his hand on her thigh and rubs her skin through her jeans.

She shrugs, the adrenaline making her cocky. “I’d like to think I’m pure.”

She thinks for a moment that he’s going to be mad. That maybe he’ll strike her. But he surprises her instead.

“Wouldn’t we all?” He shuffles towards her, his chest pressing against her knees with how close he is. “People grow sinful over time though, sad to say. That’s why we’re baptized, it’s why people like me exist. To guide others and let them accept their sins.” 

She swallows hard at his stare, how intense it is. That it never wavers. 

“Rook,” he leans in to tap her cheek, drawing her attention. “Your sin…” 

“Dunno.” She’s playing dumb, playing for time.

“Well neither do I,” he laughs, a hand pressing to his chest as he tips his head. It’s all an act, a way to fool her. He’s got a reputation, especially in this confessional room of his, for being cruel. 

“You need to speak to me, deputy. Let me sort through your words and we can figure this out together.” 

She shifts, head dropping and eyes closing, and she focuses on controlling her breathing. She has to do this, she needs to get through this as unscathed as possible. 

He might not know it, but she has a daughter to get home to. 

“John—“

Her phone rings. 

It’s loud in the otherwise quiet room. Echoing off the walls and bouncing back in her ears. Each ring that comes from her back pocket sounds like funeral bells. 

John’s eyes narrow, anger showing so terribly on his face. It’s such a quick change from his quiet patience that it gives her whiplash. 

He jolts forward to grab her shoulder and wrenches her towards him. He doesn’t waste a second, his hand plunges down and into her jean’s pocket. His fingers curl around her phone and dangles it in front of her face as he falls back on his heels. 

“Well, deputy, I didn’t know you still kept your phone on you. Or...that you managed to get it to work.” 

She swallows, head dipping. If he asks her just how she intercepted the Project’s carefully crafted radio jam, she wouldn’t be able to answer him. It’s something the resistance has been working on for so long, and it’s far from done. The reception is still screwy and they’re not too sure if the Project can listen in on their calls. She’d ruin so much if she told him. 

“Do you care to explain?” 

“Not really.” 

John quirks his lips, a teasing smile that holds enough wrath for the both of them. “Then I suppose you wouldn’t mind if I answered.” He waits a beat, expecting her to protest, but she stays silent. Mostly because it could be a number of people, and he’d only be hurting himself if he answered that call. He wants to show her off, he’s got too much pride, and hopefully that will be his downfall. 

“In fact…” he trails off and sets to work. Moving fast to untie one of her hands—only one, but that’s enough to hit him with if she really tried—and he hands her back her phone with a smile. “You say anything about where you are, and I’ll shoot you and whoever is on the other end of that call.”

Rook stares at him for a moment, watching as he pulls a gun from the waistband of his jeans that she hadn’t noticed before. He stands back and lines up the shot. 

She grinds her teeth and glances down, about to press the call button. 

And she freezes. 

Fuck. 

“Is there a problem, deputy?”

“I-I can’t.”

“No?” He pulls back the hammer on the revolver that’s still aimed at her. “Why’s that?”

She opens her mouth but nothing comes out. She can’t tell him that her daughter is phoning her. That it’s a damn video chat of all things. If John Seed knew she had a child… 

“Tick tock. Wouldn’t want to keep them waiting.” 

In another heartbeat she accepts the call and smiles. Trying her best to look serene, not at all trapped or scared. 

Eva’s young. But not young enough to not pause when she first sees Rook’s face. 

“Where are you?” It’s the first thing her sweet, lovely daughter asks her. She leans in towards her own phone and frowns. 

“I’m out scavenging.” Rook tries to wave her hand around, to gesture around her surroundings, but the rope around her wrist stops her. “Abandoned building.” 

“Oh...right.”

Rook glances up to John and sees him frowning. His head is tilted slightly, like a dog cocking their head to hear better. And she knows why. He’s trying to, without revealing himself, figure out who she’s talking to. 

He can’t place the voice.

Which had been Rook’s goal all along. To keep Eva ignorant of the men who want to destroy the county. To make sure the Seeds don’t even know she exists. 

“What did you need, sweetheart?” 

“You said we’d have dinner together tonight…” Her face is pleading, so open and trusting that it makes Rook’s heart clench. “We never do and...I just thought since you promised—“

“I know, I...I didn’t forget.”

“Really?” Eva laughs, and it’s then that Rook knows that her acting skills must be superb. “It’s alright, mom, another night maybe.”

“Yeah.” She's thankful this conversation is coming to a close, that she’s been given somewhat of an out. Quick goodbyes are said before she ends the call and drags her eyes up to John.

Where she expects to see him smug or at least somewhat pleased, she finds him staring at her with his mouth slightly agape. 

Rook tries to school her face and act annoyed. “What?”

“Who was that?”

“A friend, I’ve got a lot of those.” 

John nods real slow and lowers the gun to his side. “She called you ‘mom.’” 

Her stomach lurches, Christ she hadn’t even noticed. 

“Oh, deputy you haven’t been entirely forthcoming with me, have you?” 

“I don’t know what—“

He's standing directly in front of her now, a tattooed hand wrapping snugly around her throat. “I think it’s time you stopped lying to me.” He pauses, leveling her with a hardened stare. “Your daughter, what’s her name?”

“Fuck you,” she spits, her free hand letting go of her phone, letting it clatter to the floor as she reaches out to hold tight to the material of his shirt. Threatening to tear it. 

“Her name. Before I kill you right here and she no longer has a mother.” The gun’s on her skull suddenly. The cool metal biting into her skin. 

She doesn’t hesitate. She _can’t_. “Eva.”

“Eva,” he repeats her name slowly, considering it on his tongue. “Do you think little Eva will begin to panic when you don’t come home tonight?”

“John please—“

“Shhh, hush.” He pushes the barrel of the gun on her lips, silencing her. “I won’t hurt you, I hate seeing the pain orphans go through.” There’s a faux sadness in his eyes, a throw back to his past that she’s supposed to care about. 

“This is really telling about what kind of parent you are. Don’t you know how safe my bunker is? That I house all the children and expectant mothers? Eva will be safe here.”

“No,” she shakes her head rapidly when he steps away. Bending down to scoop up her phone. “No, John. Please don’t take her. You’ll scare her, please.”

“My siblings and I will be gentle, especially Joseph, he has always liked kids.”

“I won’t tell you where she is!” Rook screams, a last ditch effort to try and stop him. But he laughs, already opening the door to leave. To find her child and ruin her life. 

“No need. I’m sure we can track this call.” He waves her phone, glancing over his shoulder to smile at her. “Seems like God really is yearning for you to have a place among us, yet.” 


	3. Joseph

It’s a gorgeous day. And this is a gorgeous little oasis that she never even knew existed. She’ll have to take Eva here one day, when it all dies down and Rook doesn’t have to worry about the Seeds destroying the county. 

Rook takes a quick glance around and confirms that she’s alone, that this place is the most secluded place she's been in since she arrived in Hope County. That’s all it really takes for her to strip down naked and make a beeline for the tiny lake in the center of all this beauty. 

The water’s not hot, but the circle of trees on the perimeter aren't blocking the sun, so slightly lukewarm is what she’s got when she wades in. It’s been too long since she’s been able to relax, even now, it’s difficult to let her guard down. She’s still tense by the time the water’s lapping steadily at her collar bone. 

She turns in a show circle, giving the area one last cursory glance before she dives below. She keeps her eyes open for a second to see what’s under. There are clumps of algae and tiny schools of fish that flee when she disturbs the water. 

Then her eyes begin to sting and she begrudgingly shuts them. Every little sound is muffled, so she doesn’t quite hear the sound of approaching footsteps. 

When she does push off against the bottom of the lake floor, she shakes her head like a dog. Smoothing her hair back from her head and rubbing her eyes to clear the water from them. She blinks rapidly, vision clearing slowly. 

And that’s when he comes into view.

“Is the water nice?” 

Joseph’s smiling at her. Thumbs hooked in the front pockets of his jeans, and if not for the fact that he’s actually wearing a shirt this time—high collared with a black textured vest over top—she might be blushing more intently. Which is not to say she isn’t blushing, because she is. She feels the warmth on her cheeks the moment they lock eyes. 

“Deputy?”

Right. Right, Joseph Seed asked her a question. The most normal, basic fucking question. _Is the water nice?_

“Where’s your entourage? Hiding in the trees, ready to pounce?”

“No, no it’s just me.”

“You can’t be that prideful,” she admonishes, continuing when he only tilts his head at her. “To know that there’s a price on your head yet you travel with no guards. Even Jacob’s got back up.”

Joseph shrugs, stepping closer before his gaze falls down to her pile of clothes. Her guns. 

Fucking hell. 

“Jacob’s methods are violent. I’m civil when people aren’t trying to kill me.”

Her brow scrunches up. Was that...a joke? From Joseph Seed?

He doesn’t say any more after that. Just steps over her clothes and kneels down to drag his finger through the water. She hears him make a small noise of consideration before he stands up to his full height and begins to strip. 

Her whole body tenses up. “What are you doing?”

“Can I not swim?”

“Alone maybe. But this lake is occupied.”

“God gave us this lake. No one owns it.” He tosses his vest down, and immediately goes to his button up. There’s sweat stains on his collar, under his arms, and she briefly wonders why he’s chosen to wear a shirt today. 

“I’ll just be...leaving then. If you don’t mind.”

He frowns, hands dropping to his belt as he tugs it out of its loops. “I’m not keeping you here. But truthfully I was excited to have the company.”

“You’ve got your brothers and sister for company. Get them to swim with you.”

He sighs, seeming older than his 44 years when he meets her eyes again. “I wish, deputy. I’ve tried, but...since coming here...I wouldn’t say we’ve grown apart exactly.” He pulls down his zipper a little roughly, with too much force that it makes his wrist ache. “But we’re all busy. Perhaps when the collapse comes, but even then there will be jobs to do. Duties to perform that only my family can do. I wish I could spend more time with them, it’d be nice, wouldn’t it?” His smile is tense and it makes goosebumps rise on her skin. 

It almost distracts her when he tears off his jeans and kicks them away, dragging his shoes with it. Leaving him in nothing but his boxers.

“Can you just—stop?! Let me get out first.”

He goes to sit placidly on the shores edge, watching her with slight amusement. Trying to rid his mind of their conversation. “Go ahead.” 

Rook’s hands are over her breasts, and not for the first time she wishes for a smaller chest because one hand isn’t doing it. Which means both her hands are focusing on making sure Joseph doesn’t see her tits and she can’t defend herself if he goes back on his word and attacks her. 

She watches him curiously as he leans back in his forearms, legs spread slightly, and really that’s not an angle she thought she’d be seeing today. 

It’s when she’s almost on him that her phone rings. It startles Joseph, has him jumping as he swings his head around comically. She forgets momentarily who she’s with and snorts, wondering just how long it’s been since he’s heard a phone with his strange hatred for technology. 

He finds the source of it, stacked at the top of the pile, something his eyes first missed. He looks back at her curiously before slowly reaching out to grab it. 

“You still keep your phone?”

“Force of habit,” she explains quickly, maybe too quick. Because he only raises an eyebrow at her before scooping it up and weighing it in his hands. 

“How are you getting phone calls out here?” He mumbles it more to himself, squinting down at the screen with a faint frown. 

Rook’s still in the water, wondering how much she really cares about her dignity, because she’s thinking she just might run as fast as she can out of the water to tackle him. 

He taps around on the screen, eyes going wide as she hears the tell tale click of the call going through. 

He looks at her, then down again, lips pursed. 

“H-hello?”

Fuck. God no, not now. Please not now. 

She recognizes that voice, she doesn’t need to be seeing what Joseph is, because she’d know her daughter’s voice anywhere.

Joseph breathes out an uneasy sigh before he responds with a soft “hello there, child.”

Eva, her blessed daughter, is quiet for a few moments. “Is my mom nearby?”

“Your mom?” He looks up at Rook and his frown lifts slightly. She sees something light up in his eyes, and oh he’s smart. He gets it immediately. “Yes, she’s near. Taking a swim.”

“Swimming? Without me, oh c’mon now. That’s not fair.”

Joseph smiles at her child, and the act makes her skin crawl. Eva doesn’t know the first thing about the Seeds, she doesn’t even know what they look like. And that’s Rook’s fault, she realizes that now, she shouldn’t have kept her daughter ignorant. It’s dangerous and stupid, but that’s what parents do. 

Rook takes a few steps closer to the shore. Trying to go slow. To lessen the noise she’s making, not like it matters with how Joseph keeps glancing at her. 

“Well,” Eva drawls, “then who are you? I don’t think my mom’s ever described someone like you to me before.” 

Her daughter’s response is strange enough. Not ‘I haven’t met you before’ but, ‘your features haven't been described to me before.’ Someone else other than Joseph would pick that apart. They’d put the pieces together of this new character they’ve never seen before and pair it together with the fact that this stranger has never _seen_ members of the resistance. 

Joseph takes it in stride though. 

“My name is Joseph Seed.” 

“Ahh, Joseph, okay. My name’s Eva.”

“That’s a beautiful name.” She hears Eva laugh, just as bad as Rook is with compliments. 

She reaches the shore and is too mad to react when Joseph’s eyes glance over and he definitely sees too much. She doesn’t care, she’s livid. 

“Your mother’s out of the water now, I think she’d like to talk to you.” 

That’s a damn understatement and he knows it, but Joseph’s good around kids. He isn’t scaring Eva, he’s calm, and that’s something she’s grateful for. Even if she’d never admit it. 

“Give me that,” she growls, collapsing down beside her clothes as she scrambles to push a piece of cloth to her chest in lieu of wasting time getting dressed. That’d only give Joseph more time to speak to Eva. 

“Eva, hey.” 

“There you are.” There’s a softness coating her voice that only belongs to her daughter. Soft and sweet isn’t something she gets often, but when she’s able to return to the small bunker no one knows of, it’s a blessing. 

“Did you need anything? Are you okay?” Eva knows why she frets, she knows why she leaves every day. She’s aware there’s a battle on her doorstep, a war that most people associate with Iranian or Chinese soil. Never in their own backyard. But she gets it. She doesn’t know the Seeds, she doesn’t know Rook’s the resistances’ main ally and not just another foot soldier in the background. 

So her question, _are you okay? Is someone breaking down our door and about to hurt you,_ makes perfect sense. 

“I’m fine, mom. Hungry, that’s all. Wondering if you found anything today.”

Rook’s face falls. It’s hard living for the locals of the county. John’s grabbing up all the supplies he can for the collapse, there’s a shortage of almost everything. Food isn’t easy to come by, and they both have gone hungry some nights. 

“Not much. Some stale cereal. Trail mix.”

“We should learn to fish.” Eva’s trying to lighten the mood, Rook knows, but her nerves are rubbed raw and she’s painfully aware that Joseph’s watching her intently. Hanging onto every word, his swim forgotten. 

“Need a pole. And bait, some tackle...skills.” 

Eva only sighs, but it’s Joseph that catches her attention. He’s shifting uncomfortably, worrying his lip between his teeth. 

“You two are going hungry?” He whispers softly. 

“Your brother is stealing food to keep your members safe,” she hisses, momentarily muting herself lest her daughter hears. Before Eva can question _why,_ she clicks the sound back on and regains some shred of composure. 

“I have food.” Joseph says quickly, scooting a little closer, a hand reaching out to squeeze her bare knee. “We don’t have to dine together, you don’t have to reveal where you and your child live, but let me give you two something to eat. I won’t sleep well tonight knowing you’ve gone hungry.” He frowns, eyes turning dark, “I know what that’s like.” 

Her throat bobs, and she glances back to Eva, who she knows has heard what Joseph has just said. Eva’s got this desperate look on her face, such a gaunt little face too. Her cheekbones are more prominent than they should be. And if the camera were any lower she’d see how tiny her daughter is for a thirteen year old, that her ribs are showing more and more each day. 

“Okay, yes, Joseph. That’d be amazing, actually.”

Joseph brightens at her acceptance. About to speak before Eva cuts him off. 

“Are you naked?”

Rook’s head snaps back to the phone, where her hand has gone a tad lax and has dropped just enough to show Rook still dripping with water and holding her shirt to her chest instead of wearing it. 

“We were—we were swimming.”

“Naked,” Eva clarifies. “The both of you together, swimming naked.”

Rook chokes. Her cheeks turning red, though she manages a few words past the lump in her throat. She wants to say Joseph hadn’t been in the water with her, though that’s sort of a lie considering if she hadn’t called then Joseph would 100% be in the water. 

“Eve McClain Peters.” Maybe when she was younger using her full name would’ve garnered some sort of response. Now though, it doesn’t do a thing. 

“Oh wow, okay. I think I interrupted.” Eva’s too young in Rook’s opinion to smile at her the way she is. Eyebrows wiggling in such a suggestive manner it makes Rook positive that this is her child. 

“Thanks for the offer, Joseph. I’m _starved.”_ Then, softer, not quite teasing like she had been before, “you take good care of my mom.” 

The call ends before Rook can correct Eva’s mistake in this situation. Leaving Rook and Joseph alone to bask in the awkwardness her daughter left them in. 

“Well—“

“Shut up, Joseph.”

“We should go. Get food, I mean.” She looks over at him when he stands fast, realizing that he’s blushing like she is. Good, she’s not the only one flustered all to hell. 

“Right. Food.” She agrees, yanking on her clothes only after he’s turned. 

“I drove here,” he says, already walking away. Picking up his clothes and pulling them on as he walks. “It’s a straight shot to my truck, I’ll meet you there.”

He’s gone faster than she knew he could move. Which is a blessing right now, when her heart is pounding wildly in her chest and she can hardly keep her cool. 

Stupid. Her blushing like a schoolgirl in front of Joseph. But it seems like he just might feel the same. Which is a scary thought. One she can’t dwell on right now when her daughter’s home and hungry. So she buries whatever feelings had been dragged up and follows where Joseph went as she sends up a quick prayer. 


End file.
